Choice, selection and segregation in the municipal schools in Rio de Janeiro

The article investigates the distribution and access to vacancies in municipal schools in Rio de Janeiro, focused on school availability. It summarizes a bibliography about enrollment/choice rules in school networks in different countries. The analysis is centered on two heterogeneous enrollment poles with a large flow of students between the first and second divisions of elementary school. The analyses illustrate the flow pattern among schools and identify the procedures and justifications used by school administrations in the selection and distribution of students. The results show non-random patterns of student distribution and the occurrence of veiled actions of the actors who reveal loopholes in the registration rules and contribute to school segregation in the city.

School Segregation; Access to Education; Educational opportunities; Public School; Educational Inequalities